Tag Archives: MEP

Europe Direct Leeds recently held aone day event attended by 165 people in all which aimed to engage professionals and ordinary citizens (both young and old) in a debate on food, farming, waste and sustainability. The event was funded by the European Commission through our Europe Direct Leeds Service – www.europedirectleeds.org.uk

Held at the prestigious venue, Leeds City Museum Arena, the morning session was a panel discussion chaired by Councillor Adam Ogilvie, Lead Member for Leisure. Our audience included students from Guiseley School – working with Sustainable Schools co-ordinator, Steve Ruse- we invited High Schools from across Leeds, in particular Years 11,12,& 13 students studying Science, Geography, Politics, Food Technology, Business Studies, Environmental Science and Citizenship. There were also members of the public, local community and activist groups and professionals.

We were very thrilled to have Linda McAvan, MEP for Yorkshire and Humber, giving a thought provoking talk on the European perspective. She gave an overview of the actions the EU are taking to tackle issues such as:

How can we promote fair trade and ensure farmers get a fair price for produce yet encourage people here to buy locally?

Why the EU needs to work with the governments in Africa to bring development to arid and semi-arid areas to strengthen agricultural and livestock-based livelihoods.

She touched on a new ‘Health Check‘ of the Common Agricultural Policy and monitoring of the retail sector under the Single Market Review.

Offering the world’s poorest countries preferential access to the EU market to tackle the effects of price rises;

Responding quickly to immediate short-term humanitarian needs;

Longer term development aid to revitalise developing country agriculture.

Our next speaker, George Munson, Senior Climate Change Officer in Leeds, gave the low-down on climate in Leeds, how it’s changing and what we can do to reduce emissions. A big message is that Leeds residents need to be more aware of environmental issues and why action is needed and how to limit their own impact on the environment by making positive behavioural changes

Leeds has a climate change pledge which has 150 actions which people can act on to make a personal reduction. He also spoke about involving young people, using space creatively to grow food and using ‘community harvests’ for example picking fruit people don’t want or can’t harvest for others to enjoy!

John Preston, West Yorkshire Manager from BCTV, a charity set up in 1959 which has a successful history of environmental conservation volunteering throughout the UK and around the world, talked about “What can we grow in Leeds” His focus was the domestic angle within the urban area. He gave a really interesting perspective on many of the changes, for example, how using gardens has changed since the war –many are now in part concreted over to provide parking

He covered:

Changes since World War 2

Challenges – our lack of gardens, other uses for gardens, and a decreasing gardening skills base

Thought provoking facts such as “The average UK household wastes enough food every year to make 1000 meals” and the link between reducing food waste and health.

She stressed the importance of working in partnership with other organisations when it comes to food, as the issues cross many boundaries. For example, working with students to cook healthy meals from sustainable produce encourages them to eat more cheaply but also more healthily.

New Members of Parliament will benefit from a new Members’ Statute that enters into force with the beginning of the new term. It will ensure that MEPs from all countries have the same status, e.g. in term of their salaries, sickness insurance and pensions. There will also be clearer rules on expenses and allowances.

Brexit negotiations

Press statement by Michel Barnier following this week’s round of Article 50 negotiations (6th-9th February) Brexit: European Commission recommends draft negotiating directives for next phase of the Article 50 negotiations (20th Dec 2017) bit.ly/2CIF6xi Opening statement by Michel Barnier at the Plenary Session of the European Parliament on the state of play of the negotiations with the United Kingdom (13th Dec 2017) Questions and Answers – the rights of EU27 and UK citizens post-Brexit, as outlined in the Joint Report from the Negotiators of the European Union and the United Kingdom Government (12th Dec 2017) download here.